The Rev. Timothy George, dean of Samford University's Beeson Divinity School, returned to Alabama this week after a three-week synod in Rome where he addressed Pope Benedict XVI and 285 Roman Catholic bishops gathered at the Vatican.

"By the way, I've not become a Roman Catholic, and the pope has not become a Southern Baptist," George joked.

"It was a once in a lifetime experience, being a Baptist at a synod of Catholic bishops," George said. "I was very well received."

George serves as chairman of the Doctrine and Christian Unity Commission of the Baptist World Alliance. He has been active for years in ecumenical dialogue between Baptists and Catholics.

He spoke at the Vatican on Oct. 16 during the 13th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, hosted by the pope. He was personally greeted by the pope the next day.

George was a key figure in the five-year dialogue between the Baptist World Alliance and the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, which concluded last year. A report called "The Word of God in the Life of the Church" will be published soon, he said.

The synod, Oct. 7-28, was an intensive business meeting in which the bishops discussed and voted on issues related to religious freedom, responding to religious extremism, and evangelizing youth.

George, who previously met the pope in 2009 as part of the International Baptist-Catholic Dialogue group, said he greeted the pope in Latin.

"I told him many Baptists around the world prayed for him and his witness for Jesus Christ," he said.

As a fraternal delegate, along with AME Bishop Sarah Davis and several other representatives from Christian groups, George took part in the theological discussions with bishops from around the world.

"This is the first time fraternal delegates have been invited to all days of the synod,"George said. "We saw the voting, we heard the debates."

There were a dozen or fewer non-Catholic fraternal delegates, and few stayed the entire three weeks. George and Davis, of the World Methodist Council, took part in all the meetings, he said.

"I felt it was an important invitation and I wanted to take it seriously," George said.

"We worked 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., six days a week, including Saturday. The Puritans couldn't teach Catholics anything about the work ethic. My Latin really improved those three weeks."

The main topic of the synod was "The New Evangelization for the Transmission of the Christian Faith," and 57 propositions were discussed and voted on, George said.

"We talked about the role of technology in spreading the gospel," George said.

"We discussed violent expressions in Islam and other religions, how do we understand and respond to that. The pope sent a delegation to Syria; the synod sent a message supporting that."

The synod responded to issues happening at the time, including the bombing of churches in Nigeria.

"We discussed the very harsh conditions in which Christians are being called to live out their faith, and how can we support Christians who are being persecuted. All over the world, Christians are dying for their faith. Some are Baptists, some are Catholic."

Although the bishops discussed how women can have a larger role in the church, ordination of women as priests was not up for debate. "That didn't even come up, nor did celibacy for priests," George said. "Those were not on the table for discussion."

George said that during his time working on dialogue between Baptists and Catholics, both sides have maintained their theological integrity while trying to increase cooperation.

"We've achieved greater mutual understanding," George said. "It doesn't pay to cut corners. We're about conviction, not accommodations. They agree with that. That's the way forward. We're very candid about where we disagree on scripture. Dialogue does not mean compromise. One doesn't have to give up deeply held beliefs to have a discussion about anything."

The dialogue is necessary, he said.

"There are more Catholics in the world than any other Christian group," he said. "Religious freedom is an issue that Baptists and Catholics must stand together for today. Catholics and evangelicals today face a culture that is increasingly hostile to the sanctity of life, marriage and religious freedom. This is a place where Catholics and evangelicals are allies."

George said he was able to spend time with key Catholic leaders, including Cardinal Donald Wuerl of Washington, D.C., and Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York.

"I learned an awful lot," he said. "I made friends from all over the world. We established a real friendship. You find that there's a common commitment to Jesus Christ and spreading the faith."

George noted that today is Reformation Day, commemorating Martin Luther posting his 95 theses to protest the sale of indulgences in 1517.

"How did the Reformation start?" he said. "It was started by a Catholic monk reading the Bible."

George said he was impressed by the spirituality and fervor of faith he encountered at the synod. "There are streams of renewal in the Catholic Church," George said. "Change happens. It happens slowly in the Catholic Church. That's what I think is happening. Every Catholic church I know of has Bible studies going. There are still problems and issues that separate us, especially with the issue of authority. I don't see an easy bridge over that one."

George said Pope Benedict XVI was tireless.

"I'm very much impressed with the pope, his tenacity and perseverance. He's a person of remarkable vigor. I didn't see any diminishment of his abilities or powers to be a leader for the Catholic Church and for moral authority."